The Good Fight
by ZetsubouMao
Summary: The streets of Ikebukuro are dangerous. Tae Takanabbi knows this well, but that doesn't stop her from getting involved with dangerous matters and shady business ordeals. Because in Ikebukuro, it's survival of the fittest. Izaya/OC/Shizuo, other pairings.
1. The Wonders of it All

**The Good Fight**

**Prologue/Chapter One: The Wonders of it All**

Disclaimer: I do not own Durarara!! If I did, I would be making Izaya and Shizou do naughty things while...I'll stop there.

**Note:** This fic does include an OC. Pairings are questionable, but I know that I will definitely throw in Anri/Mikado/Masaomi, Celty/Shinra, Namie/Izaya, SHIZAYA and others. If I get anything wrong, feel free to correct me. Reviews are appreciated, thank you and enjoy!

**P.S.** Pairings for the OC are still undecided. Please give me your input on who you would like to see paired with Takanabbi!

* * *

The streets of Ikebukuro were dangerous.

Sometimes it was hard to see how horrifying this place could be. Some of Ikebukuro's residents, in a way, were not even aware of how bad it was.

Maybe it was because some of the terrors of Ikebukuro had to be found, sought out and dissected. They had to be explained, mapped out. Because who really understood what went down in this part of town without knowing everything that there is to know?

Stories were common, some of them true, some of them obviously fake. So they were labeled as such, because not every word that was said had cold, solid proof behind it.

Stories that portray ruthless gangs, crazed murders, mysterious disappearances and one headless biker seemed to be the backdrop of everything.

In the end though, they were just stories.

And yet, there were a select few Ikebukuro residents that could rebuke the claims.

Key words: _a select few_. These few, however, were not always the most reliable sources.

Because if reality serves itself right, everything and everyone has its secrets. Secrets that unveil not everything is as it seems and not everyone is how they appear.

One that knew this well was a young woman who has lived in Ikebukuro her entire life.

Her name is Tae Takanabbi.

* * *

The first time Takanabbi had experienced anything _completely_ out of the ordinary in Ikebukuro was three years ago, when she was sixteen years old.

The day of this occurrence was a rather pleasant one, weather-wise.

The temperature was neither too hot nor too cold so she felt completely comfortable in her Raira Academy uniform as she walked home from school.

The evening sky was one that looked straight out of a painting; with long streaks of orange, red, purple and pinks, Takanabbi felt at ease as she slowly watched the sky fade into night.

The young teen, at this hour, usually would have been home or with friends by now, but she had been forced to stay late at the Academy to assist in tutoring duties. Her having to commit more hours to class actually just added onto the heap that was known as Takanabbi's Wednesday.

It hadn't been a spectacularly amazing day at all for the girl actually, although the weather seemed to contradict that. It had been quite a troubling one for her.

First, she had woken up with the feeling of a head-cold. She had a cough, runny nose, pretty much the works. She immediately took some medicine, but it pestered her all morning long until it panged away in mid-afternoon.

Then, as she was going about preparing herself for her outing and whatnot, she realized there was nothing suitable to pack in a bento in her home, which was incredibly ironic because her family owned a small grocery store in Ikebukuro. Not only did she comment under her breath about this irony, but her older brother, who was a lazy bum that graduated Raira Academy about a year ago, had managed to hear her rummaging about the house. He appeared in front of her in a foul mood, furious that she had awakened him at such an early hour.

He said many cruel words to her, and she listened and soaked them up like a sponge before she wrung herself out, shooting similar insults at him. She was particular to mention heavy subjects such as why he was still living in their parent's home and why his college and doctoring dreams seemed to have simply disappeared.

The fight ended there with a heavy silence, and Takanabbi instantly fled the scene with mismatched socks and untied shoes because she was running late and she _needed_ to get food. She did feel bad about hurting her brother, as she always did when she snapped at him about those points, but he had started it, and she was genuinely concerned about those two things.

His future was bothersome to her. He used to be such a dreamer.

Then something happened. No one knew what, but everyone knew that Tetsunosuke had changed. That much was obvious.

But her brother and family is a different story.

As soon as she accepted the fact of her socks being different colors, the lunch she had bought at grocery store that wasn't her family's (her parents would have murdered her if they knew this, and in a way, she was kicking herself about it), and that she was going to be undeniably late, she realized this day just was not hers.

School supported that thought. Her teacher reprimanded her for her "poor time management" in a loud voice, she was embarrassed in front of classmates with her socks because a girl had so rudely pointed them out, and her bento, when she opened it, had been mislabeled. She had wanted one with beef, not shrimp.

Then the remembrance of her and her brother's fight made her sad, and her friends started to question her with unnecessary ambition because apparently her face _"just gave away so much"._

Finally, her teacher decided to inform her she would be tutoring two fellow students, which meant another three hours added to her school schedule. Not only was this news relayed to her last minute, but it interrupted her plans of going shopping with her friends after class.

But as Takanabbi reminisced about these events, hiking up her shoulder bag that she used for school closer to her neck, she wasn't as upset about the day as she thought she would have been. Instead, she had almost completely forgotten about her misfortunes.

Takanabbi didn't understand why she felt this way, but she just shrugged it off and accepted the oddity of it all because at this moment, of this seemingly bad day, she saw _something_.

It was something she wasn't expecting. It was something that made her eyes open wide and her mouth gape open. She was alone at this time, standing in awe on a street corner, one foot in mid-step, ready to set off on the crosswalk.

But she froze. Listened to the roar of a motorcycle, and then an echo of a horse's neigh, watched the passing figure of a biker shrouded in black rev the machinery beneath him.

She could have sworn she had heard the _'clop, clop' _of a horse's hooves as she met the view of this biker, who had slowly turned his yellow-helmeted head towards her.

It was like nothing she had ever experienced before.

She felt scared, yet excited as the biker and her studied one another. There was a sensation of being so cold, so engulfed in shadows and darkness that consumed her even though she stood beneath a warm glow of a street light. Her stomach was doing flips, her body was shaking.

The biker saw it all, and Takanabbi knew it. It was like the biker and she were the same person, could feel, hear and see the same things. Was it because it felt like time had slowed? Was it because there was no one else, just the two of them? Was it because the end of this awful day was molding into a night that seemed too perfect?

And before she knew it, Takanabbi raised her hand at the biker.

_"Hello,"_ it seemed to say.

Then time froze up again, went slower and slower as Takanabbi turned her head to follow the passing biker. The biker mimicked Takanabbi's head moves, and then...

He waved back.

It was over as suddenly as it came. Takanabbi was alone again, standing dumbfounded, her hand raised in the air, her eyes staring far down into the shades of a city street, appearing to be doing these actions for no apparent reason.

She dropped her hand to her side, looked up and down the street one last time, and then started to walk across the crosswalk. When she rounded another corner, she was met with crowds upon crowds of Ikebukuro citizens. If one were to look at her face, observe her body language, she would give off the display of a normal school girl, calm and at home in the bustling city.

Little did anyone know that she was anything but normal, because with that sighting, the life of Tae Takanabbi would never be the same.

She had seen "The Black Rider". She was one of the first to have seen the legend that was slowly, slowly being born in Ikebukuro. She had made a connection.

She was _different_.

* * *

"Tae-san, where do you want me to put this box?"

Takanabbi blinked, pulling herself out of her memories, and glanced at one of her employee's teenage face.

"Oh, uh, place it in the back will you Kenichi-kun? I still need to inventory that."

"Haiiiii."

The young woman watched as the blue eyed, dusty brown haired boy walked away, whistling a tune like he always did. He disappeared behind the front desk of Takanabbi's grocery store, Tae Grocery, seconds later.

With this, Takanabbi turned back to her task at hand, which consisted of organizing soup cans on a shelf. She discovered herself wanting to fall back into her mind, and think of that day once again.

The steel haired girl had been doing this a lot lately. Constantly thinking of that moment and the past, constantly wondering _'what ifs' _and constantly losing focus in the middle of important things. Her favorite time to daydream seemed to be when she was trying to maintain her business.

Takanabbi didn't know why she kept revisiting her memories. They weren't anything special really, now that seeing The Black Rider had become somewhat common. In fact, The Black Rider was an accepted fact in Ikebukuro now. No one doubted it when someone claimed to see the biker, people only questioned what the rider actually _was_.

Because apparently, he was headless.

However that was merely a rumor. It wasn't proven that he didn't have a head. It wasn't even proven if it was a _'he'_ at all. Was it human, a lone biker that disbanded from a gang? Or was it something more, a _monster_ of some sort?

Personally Takanabbi threw all of that nonsense aside. She liked to think the biker was a person just trying to make a living, like the rest of the world. But in the back of her mind, she had this nagging feeling that this was no where near the truth.

It didn't matter though, at least not to Takanabbi right now. She decided to keep her memory of The Black Rider to herself, as well as her thoughts of him...or her...or _it_ locked safely away. Because there was something nice, something lovely about not knowing everything.

Takanabbi placed her last soup can in its spot and stood up, brushing off her white store-apron and headed over towards the front desk.

As she stepped behind the counter, she caught sight of her store's cigarette collection. She noticed it looked a bit empty and unorganized, and noted this would be her next project, because work was never done at Tae Grocery. There was always something to do.

"Kenichi-kun," Takanabbi called, "are you almost done with that box?"

"Hai Tae-san! Do you need- _gah_!"

A loud crash, a strangled cry and the sound of things clanging and falling met the store owner's ears. She instantly placed a hand on her forehead and sighed, walking slowly towards the back of the store as she did so.

She paused by the doorframe, placed her back against the wall and crossed her arms. She wanted to hear how bad the damage was before she saw it.

Because frankly, from the noise it made, it didn't sound good.

"...so how bad is it?" she asked lightly, her voice straining with irritation. She could hear Kenichi moving around, pushing aside products and other things.

"Eh...it could be worse..."

Takanabbi peeked her head into the doorway, and exhaled once again.

There really was always something to do here.

* * *

After an hour of cleaning up the backroom, of which Kenichi had somehow managed to cover in flour, it was back to its previous state. Or it was relatively close to it.

Takanabbi had moved to the front of the store, leaving Kenichi to go about doing some last minute cleaning and closing procedures. She was glancing out the large, front window and into the street that lay beyond.

Her grocer resided in an area that received heavy people-traffic during the hours of both day and night, but for some reason, even though this evening was just as bustling as the others, there was something Takanabbi felt was missing.

She watched the many colors of city-goers' clothing pass by, and listened to the muffled noises of booming chatter that dangled outside the window. The bright, neon lights that shone above other places of work highlighted the actions of the street, and made people's faces glow, showcasing what they seemed to be doing, thinking, or speaking of.

Takanabbi's pale grey eyes studied everything closely. However her studying soon came to an end when Kenichi rounded her side with a smile, with her jacket and shoulder bag in hand.

"Time to go home, neh Tae-san?"

The young woman smiled back and nodded, but did not speak a word. As she began to head towards her employee and retrieve her things, Takanabbi glanced outside one last time.

The brown eyes of a teen girl with pigtails met her grey gaze, and for a moment they just looked at one another. The girl looked sad, nervous too as she fiddled with her pink flip-phone. Then a man with glasses appeared by her side, and their eyes unlocked.

And that was that.


	2. The Outsiders

** The Good Fight**

**Chapter Two: The Outsiders**

Disclaimer: I don't own Durarara!, clearly.

**Note:** Love reviews and will respond to questions. Thank you to jayrosew and Talye Kendrin for your comments. Much love.

_

* * *

Scared?_

_No...that feeling I got was different._

_It was the first time something so unusual had happened to someone as ordinary as me._

_Shivers ran through my body when I saw it._

_That's right, what I felt from the bottom of my heart back there..._

_...was excitement..._

_EMAS EHT NI ENO _

* * *

_'What a boring day...'_

Takanabbi sighed, her shoulders slumping while she was once again silently staring out her store's window.

Business had been light so far today, and she had caught herself looking aimlessly out at the Ikebukuro crowds multiple times. She was not sure why the window and the outside world had been so attractive to her today, but she had a sensation, a feeling that if she took her eyes away from the window for even a split second, she would miss something.

However nothing out of the ordinary had happened. It was as if she was looking for it, that something. But what? Why had she been so entranced with the outside world today? This day had been so routine, so ordinary and controlled.

It had been the same as any other day. And yet, Takanabbi had those feelings, feelings like the ones she had experienced the night she had seen the Black Rider.

"Whatcha lookin' at, Tae-san?"

Takanabbi glanced towards her young employee Kenichi, who had just walked into the store, ready for his shift. He worked minimal hours, mainly after he was out of school for the day or on weekends (he usually threw a fit though if he worked on those precious, school-free days).

"You're late," Takanabbi dead-panned, completely ignoring Kenichi's question.

Kenichi's usually smiling and goofy face fell, "S-sorry Tae-san."

Takanabbi crossed her arms but returned her gaze to the streets.

"Just get to work," she replied. "There are boxes of ramen in the back that need to be price-marked."

Kenichi muttered something under his breath after hearing her orders, and Takanabbi couldn't help but give a small smile. He hated price marking, especially the ramen sets, since they always seemed to escape his hands in the oddest of ways. Kenichi was clumsy, to say the least, and sometimes Takanabbi truly questioned her intentions about why she allowed him to work for her.

Maybe it was because, no matter how cold she came off, he was always willing to come back around for her. She knew he was intimidated by her lackluster and somewhat dry personality, but she was also aware that he put up with it despite her abuse of him. All she needed to do to satisfy the boy was show him she smiled and that even though he was a pain sometimes, Takanabbi did find him accommodating.

But the reason for hiring her assistant was not an important matter at this time. At this moment, this exact second, Takanabbi finally found something interesting to look at.

The crowds that filtered through the street that lay before her store had seemed to have dissipated into thin air, and everything in the outside world, beyond the window, appeared to have frozen in place.

A young man clad in a black coat trimmed with fur was standing casually in the middle of the street, staring straight at Takanabbi. He wore a large and condescending sneer, his canines seeming to sharpen as his lips stretched farther and farther across his face. His dark eyes were narrowed dangerously.

His malicious grin and predatory eyes, Takanabbi knew them. They were familiar.

_'Orihara Izaya.'_

Takanabbi felt consumed by his presence, and couldn't bring herself to look away, especially when his lips began to form words.

_"Better watch out ~"_

"Tae-san where do these go –?"

"Get down!"

There was a shout, and the sound of glass shattering erupted in Tae Grocery. Takanabbi heard people yelling, and could feel Kenichi trembling beneath her body as her ears rang loudly from the sound of the broken glass. She picked herself up onto her knees immediately, and yanked Kenichi up by his shirt collar soon after.

"You okay?"

He didn't respond. All he did was sit in front of her, shaking uncontrollably, eyes wide and mouth gaping open. Takanabbi did a once over on him, saw no blood and deemed him unhurt, and then glanced about her.

The front window of the grocery store had been completely destroyed, little shards of glass remained in the frame, but they were sharp and scattered about. As she looked around, the utter chaos that had just occurred began to dawn on her.

Her store looked like a train had ripped through it...that train namely being a gigantic, red vending machine that was now nestled deep into the wall opposite of the window. Several racks and product shelves had been knocked down like dominoes against each other. Various store items were littered across the floor, liquids, splotches of different kinds of solids and many other substances painted the walls, ceiling, literally everything that the eye could see.

Takanabbi stood up, dusting her clothes off with one hand while pulling Kenichi up by the other (which was still tightly gripping his shirt collar). As the young boy staggered to his feet, he seemed to return to reality.

"What the hell?" he shouted in Takanabbi's ear, "What the hell?"

Takanabbi was quiet. She merely stared at the mess that her store had become. Her face was blank and void of any emotion, however her fists, as Kenichi soon noticed as he glanced down at his shirt collar, were clenched and furiously quivering.

"Tae-san -?"

"Shit...is uh, is everyone okay?"

Takanabbi didn't look to the voice and ignored Kenichi's yelp and the way he instantly hid behind her as she released him. She disregarded everything, or so it seemed. The fact that people stood staring, yet were several feet away from the store didn't faze her, the fact that some sticky liquid was seeping towards her shoes didn't make her budge an inch, and the fact that someone was speaking to her, asking her for her wellbeing, did not trigger any reaction from the girl.

All that was there, for a few moments longer, was a young woman with blank eyes, tightened lips, and shaking fists. But then –

"Who...who is going to pay for all of this?"

Although she had nearly died, that didn't matter.

* * *

Tom blinked, and almost choked on the cigarette he had been chewing on.

"You want what?"

"I want you to pay for all the damages."

Tom stared at the young woman incredulously, unsure of how to react to her request. It was sort of a shock that he, the infamous debt collector, was being asked to pay for something. Actually, it was just plain out of the ordinary. It was an anomaly.

Now, Tom knew his money. He knew it well. He knew how the whole vicious cycle went. He practically ran that cycle through and through. He sought out customers, received customers, handed out money, got paid back (and if he didn't there would be hell to pay) and then started all over. It was a daily exercise.

But this kind of money dealing, him owing money, him paying a debt, was just plain confusing.

Takanabbi was studying Tom as he mentally argued with himself. She took in his brown, corn-rowed hair and dark skin, his nice suit and ring adorned fingers and couldn't help but think 'he seems well off'.

She shook off her observations and continued, deciding no matter how long he contemplated this situation, her want and need was finalized. "Since your employee literally mutilated everything in my store by throwing a vending machine through my window, I believe it should be your responsibility to cover the costs of replacing my window, products and overall store structure to its original state."

As these words left her mouth, Takanabbi knew she was slowly sealing the deal. Tom couldn't argue anything of which she had said.

After all, Heiwajima Shizuo, the strongest in Ikebukuro as well as Tom's "employee", was the root cause and culprit of the situation.

Tom leaned forward to rest his elbows on his desk. He folded his fingers together neatly, and looked at the store owner over his sunglasses.

"I understand...however, I cannot hire a professional construction crew to fix the window...or wall –"

"But-," Takanabbi began sharply. She was cut off by Tom pointing over to the blonde bartender, who had been standing near his office's door the whole time.

"Shizuo will fix everything instead."

The blonde, who had been fidgeting irritably the whole while, exploded. "The fuck? Why should I have to fix everything? I already told you it was that fucking flea's fault-"

"Shizuo you have no proof of that," Tom said pointedly and the conversation ceased with a large huff from Shizuo.

Takanabbi could literally feel Shizuo's anger. It was smoldering and tense, and the young woman felt uncomfortable, to say the least. She had the deterrent to flat out refuse this offer, but then again, if she said no, who would fix her store? She couldn't necessarily report Tom or Shizuo to the police. Although she had proof and witnesses, who would back her actions against the debt shark and one of the most dangerous men in Ikebukuro? It was practically asking for a death wish. Even her coming to this bar in the first place, demanding payment, was practically a death wish.

She comprehended who these people were. She understood their reputations, after all, she had gone to school with Shizuo (although she doubted he remembered her, she was under the radar for most of her Raira days, and had kept quiet through much of her business days as well while he and her other fellow Raira student Izaya had gone and made names for themselves).

After reviewing her options, Takanabbi became painfully aware Tom was staring at her again. She stiffened in her chair, so much so that it felt as if her back had been broken from the sheer tenseness she had taken.

"I-I guess that's okay. What about my products? And how exactly will he fix my store?" she questioned, her voice surprisingly calm, even though she was practically surrounded by two men one would, should try to avoid while in Ikebukuro.

"I'll figure out how to replace your goods. And how to fix it...well Shizuo can figure that out."

Takanabbi looked at Tom for a moment, and then shot a glance to the young blonde man who was still fuming behind her.

"Fine...but if it doesn't meet my standards, then I'll report you to the police."

Tom smiled, amused and before any more could be said, Takanabbi stood.

It took everything she had to not sprint out of the bar, because really, who the hell/what kind of idiot threatened Tom and Shizuo? Especially with the police? Was that some kind of joke? And for freaking god's sake she and Kenichi were almost murdered by a vending machine, and she was worrying about her store?

Any _normal_ person would still be in utter horror...

_'What did I just get myself into?'_ Takanabbi thought to herself as she busted through the bar door and out into Ikebukuro's crisp night air. _'Is there something wrong with me? There has to be something wrong with me.'_

The young woman began to walk hurriedly towards her apartment, mentally cursing at herself for being so irrational concerning her grocery store. Then again though, Takanabbi was serious about money. Especially when it came to her store. She had a family business to maintain after all. Takanabbi would not fail her family, even if it meant sacrificing herself towards a minuscule cause of product replacement and building reconstruction.

Takanabbi rounded a street corner at a quickened, almost jogging pace. Why she was jogging she wasn't sure, and she was so lost in her mind that she didn't notice the figure standing directly in front of her until she smacked straight into him.

"Neeeehhh Tae-kun why are you in such a hurry~?" Orihara Izaya purred out as Takanabbi danced away from him in a frenzy.

"Orihara –"

Izaya threw his hands out to the side, slightly unnerving Takanabbi into silence. "I haven't seen you in _so_ long! I was a bit surprised earlier today when I saw you watching _me _from your shop."

Takanabbi kept her lips tightly woven together, even though she desperately wanted to deny his accusations of her watching him. She was not particularly pleased to see this man. Although Takanabbi was calm most of the time and Ikebukuro had hardened her over the years (she had faced death by vending machine after all and was not particularly affected), scarily so, she knew better than to play games with Orihara Izaya, another dangerous man one should avoid at all costs in Ikebukuro. The information gatherer was notorious for causing disorder out of his love for humans. Many things had been attributed to him.

Vandalism, kidnappings, robberies and muggings, deaths...he was capable of anything and everything.

"Not talking?" Izaya prompted. The same cannibal sneer for earlier that day laced itself across his face. He shrugged his shoulders, "You shouldn't be so rude, I mean, I practically saved your life today. I did try to warn you about Shizu-chan throwing that vending machine at you."

"If you hadn't been..." Takanabbi stopped herself mid-sentence. That aggressive glare had erupted in his eyes again.

"Go on," Izaya hissed out. He was daring her to keep going. He was screwing with her mind, as always.

"Never mind. I'm leaving," Takanabbi muttered hastily as she tried to weave herself by him as quickly as possible.

As she came to his side, Izaya giggled and then, out of nowhere, asked,

"Have you heard anything about that new colored gang, the Dollars?"

Takanabbi's grey eyes met Izaya's black ones, "Can't say I have."

And then she was gone.


	3. Seperate Ways

****

The Good Fight

**Chapter Three: Seperate Ways**

Disclaimer: Don't own DRRR!, only this story and the OCs.

**Note: **Thank you Psychotic Tendency for the reviews and THANK YOU shoxxic for the awesome feedback, made me want to write more and more. If anyone has questions I'll answer them, feel free to ask in a review!

* * *

Ryuugamine Mikado stood before Tae Grocery with wide eyes.

He was frozen in place, clutching the strap of his school bag while completely ignoring his old friend and current classmate, Masaomi Kida's, constant chatter. One could say the only way that Mikado was ignoring his old friend was because he was intently examining the shattered window of the small store with pure awe.

Every little detail of the cracked glass and damaged window frame registered in his mind, and he let his curious eyes wander beyond the glass, past the wooden planks that sealed off the window and between the few gaps between the wood that were left behind. He tried to squint and peek around the panels that had been posted up in place of the no longer existent window, and could faintly make out the colossal damage that lay inside the store.

From what he saw, he could only let his imagination run rampant regarding the innards of the grocery.

Glass everywhere, liquids painting the walls, piles of nameless items all over -

"This is exactly why you should avoid – hey Mikado-kun, you listening?"

Mikado jumped at the sound of Kida's slightly irritated voice and pulled himself out of his fantasies.

"Oh-oh sorry...what were you saying Kida-kun?"

Kida glared at his friend for a few seconds before he crossed his arms, "What I was trying to tell you before you so rudely started ignoring me was –"

However, before the young teen could begin his rant, a soft, feminine voice cut him off.

"Do you kids need – oh, Masaomi-kun, it's been awhile."

Kida, patience beginning to run thin, whirled around quickly; ready to snap at the person who had just interrupted him, and as Mikado had come to expect, readied himself for some sharp-tongued insults from his friend. He would probably have to clean up the blonde's mess afterwards, but he didn't particularly mind.

Usually.

But what came out of Kida's mouth surprised him.

"Tae-san! It has been awhile! How are you?"

Mikado, interest piqued, snuck a glance at this "Tae-san" from behind Kida's back.

The teen caught sight of a pretty young woman who looked to be a few years older than him, possibly in her late teens or early twenties, holding a wooden box. Her steel grey hair was long and layered in fine chops that neatly folded into feathered bangs. She had a thin figure and was a few inches taller than himself and Kida, and was dressed in a white, buttoned up pea coat that was paired with a red scarf, dark jeans and black flats.

Mikado had not realized he had been staring at her until his eyes met her pale grey ones, which held a startling contrast against her semi-dark hair. He blushed furiously when she smiled at him softly with a pair of light pink lips, and caught his face getting hotter and hotter when he realized that he had continued staring at her long enough to notice her face was lightly freckled.

Mikado immediately shot his eyes down at his feet, and didn't notice the way the young woman's smile faded into a heavy grimace before she turned her attention back towards Kida, who seemed completely oblivious towards the whole exchange between his friend and the woman.

"I was doing well until well, you know," she replied finally, tilting her head towards her shop, as if identifying all of the world's problems.

Kida sighed and shook his head, as if he could completely understand her woes. "Yeah, yeah it really sucks...I was there when it happened, ya know."

"Oh?" Takanabbi shifted the box she was holding in her hands, "You were, were you?"

Kida seemed to become more animated, ready to tell his side of the story, "Yeah I was just standing right across the street with Mikado-kun here," he said, jerking a thumb back at his friend, "We saw the whole thing."

Takanabbi sighed, "Interesting...so how did the whole thing start exactly? I honestly still have no idea what happened. I just know a vending machine flew through my window suddenly and completely destroyed my store..."

"Well it all started when –"

Kida abruptly became quiet, which caused both Takanabbi and Mikado to look at him questioningly. He was looking off at something behind the young store owner, which caused her to glance back over her shoulder and Mikado to follow their gazes soon after.

Mikado felt adrenaline rush through his veins as the sight of Heiwajima Shizuo came into his vision. The blonde man was dressed in the same bartender uniform the teen had seen him in last time, when he had went on a rampage with the vending machine. This time however, he was wearing a pair of lightly tinted sunglasses. His hands were shoved in his pockets and a cigarette was precariously balanced between his lips.

The young boy again, along with the excitement pumping through him, was in awe, especially when he caught wind of Kida and Takanabbi's tenseness, which had suddenly seized the once calm air around them. Mikado couldn't see the way Kida's eyes flashed with an unknown emotion and how the young shop owner's fingernails were digging harshly into the box she was still holding.

"Tae-san..." Mikado whispered, "What is he doing here?"

Takanabbi didn't look back at Kida when she replied. "He's fixing my store...I made an agreement with him and the debt shark."

"You what?" Kida gasped, his voice jumping an octave. The way Kida reacted reminded Mikado of when he had met a certain information collector, and he became slightly aware that he could be in danger as he stood casually outside a grocery store.

Ikebukuro was truly turning out to be far more than the young teen had expected.

"Why don't you run along Kida-kun," Takanabbi suddenly suggested, her grey eyes narrowing when she turned to look at the two students, "Come by my store tomorrow after you get out of school, and we can catch up then...you can tell me all about what happened to my store."

Mikado watched as Kida nodded. Takanabbi's eyes were still slit dangerously when she gave the two boys a small smile, "Your friend can come along too...I'm sorry I'm being so rude, but I have a lot to do tonight."

Although her words were kind, Mikado almost felt threatened.

Kida once again nodded and muttered something unintelligible and soon turned to Mikado, catching him by the crook of his arm. Before Mikado could say more, he was being dragged off quickly, a thousand questions floating to his mind, curiosity reaching its limit.

Once they were a safe distance away from Tae Grocery and had found a perch on a sidewalk bench, Mikado was finally able to speak.

"So...Kida-kun, who exactly was that?"

Kida, who had plopped himself down on the crudely painted green bench with an exasperated sigh, crossed his hands behind his head before responding.

"You mean Tae-san or that blonde guy? I mean I've told you a million times –"

"Tae-san," Mikado said a bit too quickly.

Kida gave him a large, impish grin, "What you think she's cute or something?"

"Oh uh n-n-no," the dark haired teen stuttered. "I was just curious...since you seemed to know her well."

Kida lifted his hands from behind his head. He rested his elbows on his knees and leaned forward, looking at the dirty sidewalk instead of Mikado.

"Well she owns that grocery store; it's been in her family for quite some time. Her brother was supposed to inherit it and take over after her parents left but he...he uh didn't so she did," the blonde explained. "I met her one morning while I was walking to school. I forgot to pack a bento so I decided to buy one from her store...it was kind of weird though, because I never really noticed the place before that day."

Mikado sat down beside Kida, staring at him expectantly, wanting more.

Kida continued, eyes still downcast. "I went to pay for the bento and she was working the cash register and we just got to talking...I started going by there more often because it was a quicker route to the Academy...but then I found another way that was even faster than that so I stopped going by her store."

Kida finally lifted his eyes up, glancing around at the Ikebukuro crowds that were surrounding their bench. "When we saw that fight yesterday and when Simon was too late to intervene to stop that Shizuo from throwing the vending machine, and when I saw that it had gone through Tae-san's window...I was a little worried, that's why I brought you there today."

Mikado gave his friend a look and Kida blushed, "No it's nothing like that. Although she doesn't seem like it, she's actually a really nice and loyal person and people like her are hard to come across in Ikebukuro."

Kida stood up then, stretching his arms out and glancing down at Mikado, "Let's get going, it's getting late."

"Oh yeah...okay," Mikado said, standing up as well. "Are we going to go to her store tomorrow?" he then asked.

Kida was silent for a moment.

"Sure...but Mikado-kun..."

"What?"

"Don't go and see Tae-san alone, ever."

Mikado's eyes widened, startled by such a request, "W-why?"

Kida smiled that wide, goofy grin of his. "Because I might get jealous! She's so cute!"

Mikado smiled back at his friend, but it was half sincere. Kida's crimson eyes were so serious even though his words sounded lighthearted and joking. The look in Kida's eyes and his words of warning, about never seeing Takanabbi alone, caused Mikado's interest to spark once again.

And as the two teenage boys began walking home, eventually going their own ways, Mikado forgot a very important, age-old saying:

Curiosity killed the cat.

* * *

Back in Tae Grocery, Shizuo stood before Takanabbi, looking down at her through his lavender tinted glasses.

The young woman looked back up at him, and remained silent, which made Shizuo a bit uncomfortable. He was used to staring, as people did it all the time. But they usually did so at a distance. This woman before him though was merely a foot away from him, clutching a box with a claw-like vice.

"So...what's in the box?" Shizuo asked, breaking the tense silence between them. Takanabbi blinked, confused, as if she had forgotten she was even holding such an object. She blinked her grey eyes rapidly again and then looked down at the said box in her hands.

"Oh...here, you'll need these." The store owner stated, shoving the crate into Shizuo's hands.

He fumbled the box for a moment before finally gaining a solid grip on it. "These...?" the bartender began, but he soon grew quiet. Shizuo had lifted the lid of the crate only to reveal various tools. He studied the utensils before looking back to Takanabbi, who had quickly moved away from the man and towards a broom.

Broom in hand, Takanabbi glanced over her shoulder for a split second before she finally said, "Well what are you waiting for? Fix my store."

Shizuo, before he could stop himself, sighed audibly. This was the last thing he wanted to do on his evening off. He'd much rather be in his apartment, sleeping or watching some movie his brother had starred in. But no, he was stuck bowing down to a girl a third of his size just because he had done a _little_ damage to her store.

The bartender gazed down at the tool box, looked back up and around the store, and felt his teeth grind against each other unconsciously.

He wouldn't be in this mess if that fucking flea hadn't –

"Do you plan on just standing there all night?"

The blonde snapped out of his reverie, and caught Takanabbi studying him incredulously, hands on her hips. He turned away from her while growling out a less than sincere, "sorry."

Shizuo completely missed the glare the young woman shot at him. The momentary hostility passed as soon as it came though, and the pair soon fell into a quiet yet tense working pattern. Hours passed, and no words were exchanged. The only sound heard was Takanabbi's sweeping of glass and then her mopping of the floors, and Shizuo's various reconstruction activities.

The two finally spoke when they both seemed to meet up at the vending machine...which was still stuck in the wall.

"So...I guess just lift it out of the wall?" Takanabbi suggested unsurely.

"Stand back a bit."

Takanabbi nodded and treaded back a few paces. Shizuo, who had somehow kept his sunglasses on the entire time (he had completely forgotten they were still hanging onto his face) slipped them off his nose, and stuck his hand out behind him.

"Can you hold these for a minute?"

Takanabbi blinked, moved forward a bit, and gently grabbed ahold of the blue-tinted glasses. She then stepped back again and watched the spectacle known as Heiwajima Shizuo.

The bartender nestled his hands against the red vending machine, letting the coolness of the metal settle onto his palms. He absorbed the feeling, and then silently counted to three in his head before his muscles in his legs and arms tightened. He pulled the machine out of the wall with little effort, pieces of plaster following in its wake.

Takanabbi felt herself trembling somewhat as Shizuo stood there, holding an object that weighed God knows how much. But it was not in fear necessarily. It was in awe and excitement.

"Wow," she breathed out.

Shizuo heard her and in a way, he was a bit surprised she wasn't squealing in fear (as most females tended to do when his awesome strength presented itself).

"I guess I should just take this –"

"There's a dumpster out back," Takanabbi squeaked out, a bit too fast for her own good.

Shizuo headed out back, Takanabbi jumping ahead of him a bit to open the door so he could squeeze through it, and soon he tossed it in the trash bin. It landed with a large thud and the scraping of metal echoed all around them. He then turned to Takanabbi, who was still studying him with high interest.

"So uh..." Shizuo began, rubbing the back of his head uncomfortably.

"I think that's enough for tonight," the grey eyed woman said. She turned back into the shop, the blonde hot on her heels.

While inside, the two prepared to leave, Takanabbi sliding on her coat she had taken off earlier. She found herself still gripping the bartender's glasses, and uneasily tapped him on the shoulder.

"Um...here you go."

Shizuo's eyes bore down on her and he took the shades from her delicately, almost afraid he would frighten her. But she didn't flinch or show any signs of fear.

The two eventually made their way to the door, Takanabbi locking up the doors while Shizuo stood behind her, waiting. It was late in the night, around one a.m. and he thought he would be courteous enough to ask her if she needed to be walked home. She politely declined and as she began to walk in the direction towards her apartment, Shizuo suddenly stopped her with an abrupt question.

"Tae-san...did you used to go to Raira Academy?"

The woman froze in her steps, and kept her back towards the blonde.

"I did," she eventually answered, "why do you ask?"

Shizuo turned on his heel, his large, muscular back now facing her tiny one.

_"Just wondering."_

And then they both went their separate ways.


	4. In Between the Lines

**The Good Fight**

**Chapter Four: In Between the Lines**

Disclaimer: I do not own DRRR! Only this story and the OCs.

**Author's Note:** I would love to thank all my reviewers. I would write personal thank yous, but this story editor is pissing me off. And I am very sorry this took so long. I have been extremely busy.

_

* * *

_

_"Police have reported another missing person in the Ikebukuro area as of last night. Details behind the girl's disappearance remain unknown."_

Takanabbi stood in the middle of her apartment's kitchen, staring blankly at a flashing television screen while balancing a hot cup of coffee in her hands. Her eyes were reflecting the images that were dancing across the screen, and she couldn't help but tilt her head in concern as the words of the news reporter continued to make their way to her ears.

_"Law enforcers believe that the girl's, who is a minor and will remain unnamed in this report, disappearance is somehow linked to the string of kidnappings that are currently taking place in Ikebukuro."_

Takanabbi took a sip of her coffee. The scalding liquid didn't faze her as it slithered down her throat. All she could focus on was the television; nothing else was catching her attention. But then –

_"In other news..."_

The young woman finally came to her senses and noticed that she managed to pour some of her drink down her white shirt. She gazed down at the stain, and then sighed heavily.

"What a mess," she finally said. She stood still for a moment before heading over to the nearby sink, where she picked up a pink-flowered washcloth. It was no coincidence that, two minutes later, just as she began dabbing the coffee stain lightly with the towel and some warm water, that her cell phone began to ring.

She paused her movements, and stared at the phone that was resting on her kitchen's counter. The way it was glowing at her and vibrating vigorously made her think it was angry with her for some reason.

She walked towards it apprehensively and glanced at the screen. It was definitely not a coincidence.

"What do you want?" Takanabbi said as she picked up the call.

There was a giggle on the other side of the line and a breathy exhale of air.

_"Geez Tae-kun, you sound so hostile this morning. Didn't sleep well? Hmm~"_

"What do you want Izaya?" the young woman snapped, glaring heatedly at the wall, as if it were the information collector himself.

She could practically feel Izaya's sneer through the phone as he went on to say, _"Well I was just wondering if you watched the news report just now..."_

Takanabbi remained silent. She knew that Izaya was aware that she had seen the report. She watched the news every morning, paying particular attention towards the reports of missing persons. And he just knew her too god damn well.

Izaya took her abrupt quietness as a signal to speak on,_ "I just received word from a source that the people that seem to be disappearing are targeted specifically."_

"Oh?" the store owner replied while resting a hand on her hip. Her eyes were still narrowed at the wall. "And why are you telling me this?"

_"I found it interesting and I thought 'oh, Takanabbi-kun would like to hear this',"_ the man on the other side of the phone remarked with the usual brittleness he used when addressing the store owner.

And then what came out of his mouth next froze Takanabbi to the core:

_"Apparently the kidnappers steal away those who will not be missed."_

And with that, Izaya hung up the phone so quickly that it was as if a conversation had not even existed. Takanabbi was taken aback by this as Izaya always loved to drag her around. She remained rooted stone solid for a few seconds, deciphering what actions to take, but didn't dare call him back, although there was a desperate urge to do so. She decided to remove her phone from her ear instead, and stared at the screen mindlessly, just like she had done to the television.

"Izaya..." she said quietly to herself. An unknown feeling took ahold of her. However -

She tossed the device carelessly back to the kitchen counter, where it clattered along the tile loudly, almost sounding like a train against its tracks. The sentimental moment of peace was destroyed just as it was born.

"You're just as annoying as you were in school, but I wonder..."

With that said, Takanabbi went about her usual morning routine, which consisted of making herself socially acceptable and visually pleasing, and organizing personal items into her purse, which at this point, was almost as large as she was.

She stuffed her wallet, a compact mirror and a few other assorted items in the red purse, and just as she began slipping on her white coat, she looked back at her cell phone, which was still on the kitchen counter.

Against her better judgment, she left the cell phone where it was.

"Why are you back in Ikebukuro?"

* * *

_'I didn't find my head today either...even though I'm always looking for it after I get off work...'_

Celty Sturluson was deep in thought this day. More so than usual. Her mind was running rampant, unknown and foreign emotions drilling her into aimless actions of riding around pointlessly on her black bike. Searching, searching, searching, always searching.

But was she really looking for her head...or something else?

_"Why don't you just give up?"_

Celty found herself revving her bike, sudden waves of anger flooding her body as Shinra's, her roommate and lover of sorts, words echoed throughout her. Give up on such a thing; leave her head wherever it may be?

_'Like I would ever do that!'_

And then the frustration subsided as she pulled up to a stoplight. She stopped her bike, balanced her legs and feet against the street so she could hold herself up and once again let her thoughts get the best of her.

_'The reason I can't give up...I can't tell Shinra yet...I can't tell him of these emotions that twist within my chest. I –'_

"Hey."

The sudden intrusion of another's voice compelled Celty to jump, which wrenched her once again from her memories. She quickly twisted her head to the side. Standing on the sidewalk beside her was none other than Shizuo. His stance was irritated, and Celty could feel the unease from him as she studied his eyes through his lavender glasses.

She was a bit surprised to see him, actually. He always seemed to have a knack for finding her and seeking her out at the oddest of times, and although the headless rider had more important business to attend to (finding her damn head); she decided to give the blonde her time of day.

"Celty, can you come with me for a bit?"

Nodding her head, she pulled her bike up to the sidewalk and dismounted, following behind the blonde closely as he led her to a nearby fence. She eased her bike up against it, and leaned up upon the metal appendages. She had a feeling she knew what he needed her for.

"Izaya is back in Ikebukuro," Shizuo began. He paused for a moment and Celty already knew what he was speaking of, as she had run into the information collector the night before.

"I almost got to punch him...but Simon interfered..."

Celty nodded. She wasn't particularly surprised by this revelation. But then –

"I threw a vending machine...and really messed up a girl's store."

The blonde must have felt his companion's slight shock, because Shizuo turned his face towards her. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yeah...really messed it up...she somehow convinced Tom-san to repay her."

Another turn of events. Celty found herself leaning towards Shizuo, a bit more interested than she had started out as. Thoughts of her head were drifting slowly away from her.

"It was kind of weird actually, he gave in so easily. And now I have to help her fix it up. And it's all because of that fucking flea."

Celty shook her head and turned to face the nearby street. She was a bit disappointed in the ending of Shizuo story. The biker had actually thought his little story was going to end with a bang, but it, as always, turned back around towards his sworn "enemy" Izaya. It was always about Izaya after all.

Shizuo seemed to ignore Celty's obvious discontentment and continued on his rant.

"Unlike Kadota and Yumasaki, I'm always alone when I cause trouble," the bartender sighed. "The same goes for Izaya, since he doesn't have any friends."

A small wind blew about them, stirring Shizuo shaggy blonde hair. Celty crossed her arms and Shizuo reached for a cigarette, flicking a lighter to it soon after.

"It's not like I never get lonely...I want to meet people too, even if it's just a shallow relationship," Shizuo muttered, pressing the cigarette to his lips. "But..."

Celty once again turned towards the blonde. He seemed to be off in his own world, rambling without even realizing it. Celty had a feeling Shizuo liked her company because she didn't speak, but when he opened himself up like this, she couldn't help but want to say something.

But what could she possibly say?

Celty, unconsciously, reached a gloved hand out to his shoulder. Shizuo, who was still distracted, didn't even notice because just as his thoughts of his own feelings crossed his mind, they were overcome by none other than his ideas about Izaya.

"Why did Izaya come back to Ikebukuro?"

Celty retracted her hand instantly. Shizuo took a drag of his cigarette. The wall between them was once again in place.

But then Celty's mind clicked. Why would an information broker want to stay in Ikebukuro for more than a day? She had seen him just last night after he had mentally tortured a few shameless victims...why would he need to be in the city for any longer than that evening?

"That's right...I remember he was talking to some kid from Raira outside that girl's store –"

"Oh! Are you okay?"

A sudden commotion to the couple's left caused Shizuo to lose his train of thought, and both of them turned their attentions towards the sudden yelp. They both caught sight of a young girl with auburn colored hair, and an older girl leaning down beside her.

At first it had appeared they had just bumped into each other, as Shizuo vocalized that, but suddenly, Celty froze up.

The auburn haired girl...

_'It couldn't be.'_

Celty abruptly shot off towards the girls, leaving Shizuo in the dust, confused.

"Hey Celty –!"

_'It couldn't possibly be!'_

Before anyone could comprehend it, Celty was on her knees, grasping the auburn haired girl's wrists, completely shoving aside the other girl and completely disregarding her in every possible way.

The girl that the black rider was clinging to had her head. It was her head. It had to be. Or was this just some weird coincidence?

The auburn hair, green eyes...too familiar...too familiar...

Celty felt her chest tightening, and strange feelings of anxiety and emotional wreckage surged through her body. How could this possibly be...?

_'My head...'_

The girl and Celty made eye contact.

There was this dazed look in the young girl's eyes. She looked confused, lost and in another place. She didn't seem aware of anything going on. However, when her reflection flashed across Celty's yellow helmet, something happened.

Horror ripped across her expression and she let out a terrible cry of fear that rang through the streets of Ikebukuro.

She flew to her feet, scared like a rabbit and tried to dart away from Celty. But the Dullahan had a firm grip on her, and mimicked her movements while somehow managing to type a quick message on her phone.

_"I just want to get a close look at your face!",_ printed itself on the device's screen.

The girl didn't even look at it, and yelled out again.

"No, no, no!"

Celty, unable to keep up with the frightened teen, lost her handle of the girl when she suddenly snapped her arm to the side.

Shizuo, who had been making his way over towards the scene, tried his best to intervene by catching the girl in his arms.

"Whoa, whoa hey calm down...we're not trying to hurt you –"

A sharp and abrupt pain erupted in Shizuo's leg though. He gasped from shock, and shot his eyes down towards the pavement of the sidewalk. A young teen with slicked back brown hair was nestled at his feet, pen in hand, while simultaneous digging another one deep into the bartender's flesh.

"Let go of her," he hissed, a crazed and wild look on his face as he glared vehemently up at Shizuo.

Celty, still trying to snag a hold of the girl, caught wind of the situation and panicked. Before the biker could realize it, the girl was off running down the street, leaving her in a daze. Her friend was injured but then her mind was torn in two.

Her head – Shizuo – her head – Shizuo –

"Hey."

Celty looked to Shizuo.

"Go on, I'm not sure what's going on but you need to chase her, right?"

Celty, taken aback and senses somewhat lost, bowed deeply to the blonde. She would owe him largely. Then, wasting no more time, she ran to her bike and instantly set off after her prey. She forgot about Shizuo for the time being.

Shizuo then smiled widely. Animal-like almost, and turned his views back to the young boy who was awkwardly stumbling to his feet, trying to obviously run after the two women. However Shizuo caught him by the collar of his shirt, and lifted him up off the ground with little effort.

The boy kicked and hissed at his restraint. Shizuo sighed.

"Is she your girlfriend or something?" the older man asked. The boy scowled down at him.

"That's right; I'm destined to be with her!"

Shizuo gave him a blank look.

"Why is she like that?"

"Like I'd know that!"

"What's her name?"

"Like I'd know that!"

"...what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Shizuo's anger erupted, and without thinking, he threw the high school student straight into the air. The boy flew, stupefied, until he landed on the concrete of the street in a crumpled heap. The bartender walked after him, and again reached down and lifted him by his shirt's collar.

"Not knowing the name of the person you love...isn't that a bit irresponsible?" Shizuo griped. He was reviewing the boy with an irritated yet intent gaze.

The teen just glowered at him like an angry cat, "A name has nothing to do with loving someone."

Shizuo blinked, utterly confused. "Huh? Then why are you destined to be with someone whose name you don't even know?"

"Because I love her! There's no other answer!" the boy screamed, kicking his legs out at Shizuo. The blonde merely lifted him higher into the air, so that he could dodge the boy's feet.

Then he stopped. The boy went limp in Shizuo's hand. His voice went grave and deep without warning.

"You can't replace love with words."

And again without warning, the boy flipped like a light switch, sharp objects seeming to sprout from his fingertips as they were driven into Shizuo's hand. The pain was just like the pens, sharp and deep. However all Shizuo could focus on was the boy saying, "The only thing I'm going to do is protect her!"

The blonde bared his teeth in a wolfish grin.

"I like you more than Izaya...so I'm going to go easy on ya."

With that said, Shizuo slammed his head forward into the boy's. It was all so sudden and unexpected that the crowd surrounding the two stared in pure astonishment. Just as fast as it had happened, the boy was knocked out form the sheer force of the blow. He was soon casually dropped into a heap on the sidewalk by his assailant.

Shizuo breathed out loudly. Unlike the spectators that were surrounding the two males, he was not at all surprised that something like this had occurred. It was a typical event in his life, beating up random people he did not know.

The blonde made a little hissing noise shortly after his sigh. His injuries inflicted by the boy came back to haunt him with that tiny exhale of air.

"Ah...my wounds will bleed out if I take these out. I'll take them out after I buy some bandages...or maybe glue would work better."

"You okay?"

Shizuo, caught off guard from the sudden voice, tore his eyes down to his left. The young woman, whom Celty had pushed aside, was standing beside him. It was none other than -

"Tae-san?"

The steel haired woman's eyes met the blonde's.

"Hello," Takanabbi greeted. She raised her hand in a small wave. It was rigid and robotic like.

Shizuo and Takanabbi uneasily watched each other. The crowd around them had started to disperse, and Shizuo felt oddly alone. Takanabbi broke the uneasy silence after a few tense moments.

"Your hand and leg..."

Shizuo looked down at his hand, the pain rekindling and causing him to wince slightly. "Yeah...don't worry about it I'm going to go and –"

"Come to my shop, it's nearby and I can help you."

Takanabbi turned away from Shizuo, automatically assuming the blonde would follow her, no questions asked. She then seemed to forget that the young man was behind her completely as she took a few steps forward and her mouth began to form words.

"I was just running some errands, but then that girl..." she muttered.

"Oh yeah did she run into you?" the bartender inquired then, cutting the girl away from her dream world. His speech left his mouth before he could stop it. He then found himself staring at her back expectantly.

"Yeah she just ran into me and then just collapsed," the store owner replied slowly. "I'm a little worried...she looked sick."

"Sick?"

Takanabbi shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and began to walk forward again. Her gestures and behavior made Shizuo feel as if she were suspicious about the events that had just transpired. Like she knew what was going on. And the way her head hung and how her shoulders were lax...

"Hey...you okay?"

"Yes I'm fine," Takanabbi said quickly. She tossed her red purse up her shoulder and slid her eyes back at Shizuo. "Hurry up; the loan shark wouldn't want to lose his most valuable asset because of blood loss. And you haven't finished fixing my shop yet."

Takanabbi began to charge forward again and Shizuo, at this point, decided he had no other choice.

And so he followed.

* * *

_Something was bound to change when if I came here._

_I knew that the unordinary would eventually happen._

_And right now…_

_I was in the midst of the unordinary._

* * *

In Tae Grocery, Shizuo was promptly shoved down onto a stool behind the check-out counter with little warning or hesitation from Takanabbi. She moved quickly about, whispering things the bartender couldn't comprehend. All he could do was watch the little woman scamper about from the back storage room and the front counter.

Shizuo glanced down at his hand again. The blood had begun to run down his wrists, staining his white dress shirt. Another one ruined. No wonder he was always penny pinching, he had to spend half of his paycheck on a new set of clothes at least once a week since they were always destroyed in fights and whatnot.

Pushing that thought aside, Shizuo turned his focus back to the store owner, who was piling medical bandages, ointment and other knickknacks on the counter beside them. She picked a gauze pad out from the wreckage, soaked it in ointment and then grabbed at Shizuo's hand, giving him little time to do anything for himself.

The blonde stayed silent and did not complain as Takanabbi picked at his skin. Her touches were rough as she patted the ointment into his wounds, and Shizuo found himself unconsciously flinching as she pressed gauze against his cuts, which was followed by her tightly wrapping bandages around his injured hand.

She made a move to pat some ointment on his leg, but stopped herself. She looked down at the ointment soaked pad, and handed it to Shizuo, avoiding eye contact.

"You can do your leg yourself," she stated. She almost sounded disgusted about the thought of touching him there. The bartender took the gauze out of Takanabbi's hand, his fingers momentarily brushing hers. She whipped her hand away from him, as if she had been shocked by something.

Shizuo awkwardly looked away from her and pressed the pad against his bleeding leg.

"Sorry," he muttered. He felt somewhat rejected by her abrupt actions. However the rejection wasn't new to him. He grew up surrounded by it, drowning in it.

It still hurt none the less. Or was that his leg that was causing him pain...?

"It's fine," the young woman responded. She turned back to the pile of items that lay on the countertop. "Do you get in fights like this often? You don't seem fazed by it."

Shizuo let out a sarcastic 'humph', "Yeah...daily basis kind of thing. Always has been since my school days."

"I see."

"...yeah, Raira wasn't the best of times."

Takanabbi met eyes with Shizuo after this comment. He pressed the gauze harder into his leg.

"You said you went to Raira."

Takanabbi nodded.

"You hung out with Izaya."

"Unfortunately," Takanabbi snapped.

Shizuo couldn't help but smile a bit at her vehemence at the mention of the flea, "I saw you with him a lot...it took me awhile to recognize you."

"I just graduated recently...I'm surprised you remember me, senpai."

"Senpai?"

"I was at my first year when you were a senior."

Takanabbi could tell he was a bit surprised by this revelation, as a confused look swept past his face.

"You're really young...I would have never guessed."

The grey haired girl tried to smile, but it was lop-sided and awkward. "I get that a lot."

Shizuo stood up then, feeling the need to suddenly leave.

"I'm sorry for the trouble I caused...but thanks," he muttered, gesturing towards his hand.

"You're welcome."

Shizuo glanced about the store, deciding that the subject best be changed. "Do you want me to –"

"Come tomorrow evening, when your wounds are a little bit more healed. I don't want you bleeding everywhere."

"Okay."


	5. Gone

**The Good Fight**

**Chapter Five: Gone**

Disclaimer: I do not own DRRR! Only this story and the OCs.

**Author's Note: **I am so sorry this has taken forever. Balancing writing with school work, my sorority and personal life is difficult. Thank you to all the reviewers, I appreciate your support and patience.

* * *

There had been a moment in time when Takanabbi thought her life was simple.

She had grown up in a decent home. Middle class, nothing more, nothing less, necessities provided for her. She had loving parents and an older brother whom she took great pride in sharing blood with. She made good grades. She participated in clubs and sports. She had friends, and lots of them.

She was average, but happy. Nothing seemed to be able to break her little snow globe world.

That was until her brother disappeared suddenly.

And then everything went to shit.

Her parents, out of pure grief, grew frail in their old age from losing their treasured son. They had children when they were older than the average Japanese citizen, but unlike the average citizen, they had suffered little discomfort in their life. Their son's disappearance was a blow that was unrecoverable.

They soon had to leave Ikebukuro. It was an executive decision by Takanabbi herself. They could not handle the rough and tough world of the town, and she had no qualms sending them to the quiet countryside of a distant adobe, where no one would know their name and no one would question their presence.

However despite this change, she had wanted to stay in Ikebukuro.

It was better this way, she had decided. Her parents fought her wishes, claiming she was "too young" to be able to handle such a task as running the family store (which she had also choose to carry on her shoulders, as she didn't want her bloodline to lose their pride and joy and also how would she pay for herself and her parents living expenses?) and they were also concerned with her living alone in such a terrible place.

However she shut their arguments out. Like a lover closing the door on their partner that had just cheated on them and who was asking for forgiveness, she was steadfast in her choice and in some ways, bitter in her parents questioning her beliefs.

Takanabbi eventually stated she had, "a calling to answer in Ikebukuro".

The calling was finding her brother.

The arguments ceased when this revelation was spoken. Her parents left. The store was hers.

Takanabbi changed.

This all happened after she saw the Black Rider.

The snow globe world shattered.

* * *

Mikado stood outside Tae Grocery with the same dumbfound look he had had earlier that week.

The store's condition had improved slightly overnight, and he couldn't help but still feel a little awed by it all. How could a human being do such damage…?

As he stared, starry eyed and dazed, a loud and sudden bang threw his attention towards the entrance of the store. A middle aged man in a worn down blue business suit staggered out, a look of pure horror like Mikado had never seen printing itself on his wrinkled face. A large head wound was bleeding out over him.

Mikado instantly seized up as he saw Takanabbi walking slowly out from behind the man. The man stumbled, falling to the asphalt below him.

"Don't ever show your face around here again," Mikado heard her growl. The sound was low and guttural, and sounded almost like that of a lion.

"Or I won't hesitate to –"

"Tae-san?"

Mikado spoke up before he could stop himself. The young woman's steel eyes shot up at him. They widened in surprise.

"Mikado-kun? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in school with Kida-kun?"

Takanabbi moved away from the old man in front of her when she realized Mikado was staring at her with a look of apprehension. The young woman suddenly looked small and vulnerable and almost...was that embarrassment or was that hostility?

"I...uh –"

"Please, get her away –"

The man was silenced by Takanabbi before he could finish. Her meek behavior dissipated.

"Get the hell out of here!" the shop owner roared then, completely disregarding the scene she was causing. The old man scrambled to his feet and pathetically limped off, leaving a fuming Takanabbi and a very confused Mikado.

Mikado, at this time, looked over at the young woman. Her eyes were narrowed, and she looked ready to rip someone's throat out. She was shaking wildly. He had never seen someone look so predatory.

Except maybe that information collector guy...

Takanabbi turned to study Mikado. The boy shrank away unconsciously.

"Forgive me," the grey haired woman muttered. "He was just a lowly street scum...asking questions that should not be asked."

"Uh...okay?" Mikado offered pathetically. His shoulders unconsciously were raised. He looked like a little lamb, ready to faint from sheer shock.

They stood awkwardly, staring at each other. Takanabbi's eyes had softened, but she was still edgy. Mikado felt as if the woman before him was towering over him, looking down, waiting for him to flee from her. Takanabbi then abruptly turned away from the teen.

"Come," she stated. "Let's talk inside."

And he followed, despite the warnings. Like a lamb to the slaughter.

And why...he didn't know.

* * *

Shizuo walked with even, measured out steps, constantly shifting his eyes left and right behind his lilac tinted sunglasses.

He felt that something was amiss. He didn't know what it was, maybe he was being paranoid, or maybe he was just tired from working a double bar shift, whatever it was, he couldn't shake this anxious feeling that was nipping at his insides.

Shizuo shook his head back and forth furiously, like he was trying to shake the feeling out of his very body.

_'Fucking stress...it's just stress.'_

The blonde giant stopped in his tracks for a moment to pull an ever present cigarette packet out from his pant pocket. He jammed the thing into his mouth in slight desperation, and then reached into his other pocket for a lighter.

Sweet, sweet relief flooded him as the flame met the tobacco, and one solid drag flooded his senses with a quick buzz. He sighed, blew out the wispy white smoke, and closed his eyes.

_'Calm down. Jesus, do I need to go get fucking anxiety meds or some shit? Or am I going crazy -'_

"Come talk again soon, Mikado-kun."

Shizuo opened his eyes. The voice that had cut into his thoughts belonged to the young woman he was currently imprisoned to, Tae Takanabbi, the grocery store owner (the owner of the grocery Shizuo had, uh, all but destroyed).

She was ushering a school student with short black hair and dark eyes out of her store at this very moment, and seemed to not be aware of Shizuo's existence. But hell, Shizuo hadn't even realized he had started moving again. Or that he was this close to Tae Grocery. When had he even started to walk again? What was he doing here again?

_'Oh right...fucking flea's fault I have to fix this shit.'_

"T-thanks for the tea, Takanabbi-san," the boy responded. He waved to her quickly, and all but scuttled off at a great speed, a bright red blush highlighting his face.

Shizuo saw all this as he took another drag of his cigarette. He then shifted his focus back to the grey haired woman. Her arms were crossed, and much to the blonde's surprise, there was a slight grimace printed on her face. She looked...agitated.

"Yo," Shizuo called out then, without thinking. His brain was doing a lot of shutting off today, and the sound of his voice startled him to where he bit down on his treasured cigarette.

Takanabbi jumped a bit before she turned towards him, unwrapping her arms from her chest as she did so.

"Oh...I didn't see you there. You're early," the shop owner stated. She looked Shizuo up and down, "long day at work?"

"You could say that," Shizuo replied, shifting his weight between his feet, feeling under the microscope from her steel stare. He then jammed his thumb in the direction where the school boy had run off in, "friend of yours?"

The young woman's lips sealed tightly suddenly.

"You could say that," Takanabbi said, parroting Shizuo. She then continued, "I'd describe him more as a curious cat."

"...cat?"

Takanabbi abruptly became flustered, Shizuo assuming it was from embarrassment considering...her weird description of the dark haired boy...as a cat.

"Er...uh let's get inside, shall we? It's a little chilly out here!"

The young woman quickly turned on her heel, rushing into the store.

Shizuo blinked.

It wasn't cold outside.

* * *

The cleaning and repairing hours passed slowly, and Shizuo was growing more frustrated as the store's clock, which was hanging above the door to the back storage room, ticked on. He had momentarily become distracted from his unknown anxiety by the exchange between Takanabbi and the young boy, but now that he was focusing on nothing more than hammering a wall back together, that annoying anxiety had returned.

It had come back in such a force, that, as he was slamming a hammer into a nail, he missed the nail, due to his lack of focus. The hammer hit his thumb, and he yelped out, causing Takanabbi, who was organizing some food cans onto a nearby shelf, to look at him curiously. There wasn't much worry shining in her eyes, but she dropped her work anyways, to investigate.

"...you okay?" Takanabbi asked, rounding Shizuo's side. He had been cussing under his breath, and snapped his head away from the young woman and hissed out a quick, "peachy."

Takanabbi pulled up the stool she had been using to stand on to put up food cans, and plopped down on it.

Shizuo looked to her, still holding his bum thumb, interested in why she was pausing her work.

From the little time he had gathered spending with her, and the little amount of conversation he had with her, Shizuo had deduced she was impatient and wanted things done at her speed, which was break neck.

"...uh...you okay?" Shizuo questioned dumbly, mirroring her words. He felt like they had been repeating each other a lot in the past few hours, but maybe he was just imagining things.

Takanabbi was quiet for a few moments before she glanced up at him.

"Do you ever miss the Raira days...when things were simple?"

The question numbed Shizuo for a moment. Things had never been simple for him. He was an outcast, a freak. Happiness was a rare thing to him, like a needle in a haystack. This time, Shizuo remained silent.

"I guess not," Takanabbi muttered. She leaned back, resting herself against the wall Shizuo had been repairing.

Shizuo turned around, leaning his back against the wall as well, and slid down so he could sit on the floor. The pain in his thumb was still throbbing slightly, but he ignored it. He opened his mouth instead.

"Things haven't ever been simple...for me at least."

Takanabbi, this time, looked down at Shizuo. The blonde man looked back up at her.

"Walk me home?"

"...sure."

* * *

The shop was locked up, and the pair set off towards Takanabbi's apartment, with barely any words spoken.

There was a confusion nestled in Shizuo's mind now, alongside that nervousness. Takanabbi had seemed to do a three sixty on him, but to his surprise, he was shoving it aside, deep into the crevices of his head, so that the only thing he could focus on was the echo of Takanabbi and his' footsteps against the Ikebukuro pavement.

He felt as if there was an unspoken agreement between them. What this agreement was, he wasn't sure, but it was...comforting, he supposed.

"A man came to my store today," Takanabbi suddenly spoke, "a reporter."

Shizuo was reaching for another cigarette as she revealed this, but paused.

"Why?"

The young woman didn't look at him, even though she knew his eyes were boring into her, "He was asking about a kid I hired a few months back...he...he's gone missing."

Her voice faltered but there was no other detectable change of emotion, "apparently he was involved in drugs...and for some reason people think I know about it."

Takanabbi closed her eyes. Shizuo looked forward.

"...I'm sorry."

"I am too."


End file.
